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Jordan

July 27, 2024

Amman 3:36 am

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The aircraft of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken disembarks his aircraft as he arrives at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, on June 10, 2024.

Quick Take

Blinken returns to Middle East in high-stakes push for Gaza cease-fire

Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in the region to push for a cease-fire as the UN Security Council was set to vote on a US-drafted resolution supporting the deal.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L) addresses the media prior to a meeting of NATO foreign ministers at the Czernin Palace, in Prague, Czech Republic, on May 31, 2024.

Quick Take

Blinken to return to Middle East in diplomatic blitz to end Gaza war

Washington's top diplomat heads to Israel, Egypt, Jordan and Qatar next week as the Biden administration pressures Hamas and Israel to agree to a last-ditch cease-fire proposal to end the war and defuse a volatile border escalation between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

KHALIL MAZRAAWI/afp/AFP via Getty Images

Quick Take

Jordan seizes 9.5 million Captagon pills at Saudi border

Much of Jordan’s efforts to counter drug smuggling focus on the Syrian border, but Saudi Arabia remains a major destination for Captagon.

Permanent Representative of Jordan to the United Nations Mahmoud D. Hmoud, Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations Alya bint Ahmed Al Thani, Permanent Representative of the United Arab Emirates to the United Nations Lana Nusseibeh, Permanent Observer of Palestine to the United Nations Riyad H. Mansour, and Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Egypt to the United Nations Osama Abdel Khalek speak to members of the media following the United Nations Security Council meeting on the situati

Regional View

Jordan to host emergency meeting on humanitarian response in Gaza

The conference, which will be co-hosted with Jordan, Egypt and the UN, comes as the humanitarian situation in Gaza is worsening following the closure of the Rafah border crossing.

Latest News

Quick Take

Jordan thwarts Iran-linked weapons plot as Hamas denies involvement

AHMAD SHOURA/AFP via Getty Images

Regional View

Israeli settlers attack aid convoy of 98 trucks heading to Gaza from Jordan

A man films with his phone a damaged trailer truck that was carrying humanitarian aid supplies.

Biden meets with Jordanian king as Israel begins Rafah evacuation

US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden greet Jordan's King Abdullah II.

Al-Monitor Staff

By Al-Monitor Staff

Pressure builds for Gaza cease-fire as Israel readies to invade Rafah

Palestinians inspect the damage to buildings after Israeli bombardment in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, on April 29, 2024 amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Regional View

Saudi Arabia ramps up regional diplomacy to avert Iran-Israel war

KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images

Hanna Davis

In Amman, reporting on refugees

Lyse Mauvais

In Amman, reporting on humanitarian crises

The Wadi Mujib river in Jordan.

Analysis

Why Israel is likely to accept Jordan’s request for more water

Experts estimate it is in Israel’s national interest to accept Jordan's request to extend the water supply agreement.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

A picture taken during a tour organized by the Jordanian army shows soldiers patrolling along the border with Syria to prevent drug trafficking, Feb. 17, 2022.

Regional View

Jordan arrests dozens in crackdown against drug smuggling from Syria

Dozens of people were arrested inside Jordan, as the kingdom ramps up efforts to fight drug smuggling attempts mainly on the border with Syria.

King of Jordan Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein and US President Joe Biden pose for a photo after the king's arrival on the North Portico of the White House on Feb. 12, 2024, in Washington.

Quick Take

'We oppose any forced displacement of Palestinians,' Biden tells king of Jordan

King Abdullah met with Biden to discuss aid to Gaza, efforts to reach a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, and related issues ahead of a looming Israeli offensive.

US President Joe Biden meets with King Abdullah II of Jordan in the Oval Office of the White House on July 19, 2021 in Washington, DC.

Regional View

Jordan's King Abdullah set to meet Biden as Gaza tests ties

King Abdullah II must balance Jordan's dependence on the United States with public anger over US support for Israel's war in Gaza.

People wave Palestinian and Jordanian flags as they march during a demonstration near the US Embassy in solidarity with the people of Gaza, Amman, Jordan, Dec. 15, 2023.

Regional View

Pro-Palestinian activists in Jordan face arrest, harassment by authorities

Human Rights Watch documented the arrest of several people who took part in pro-Palestinian protests in Jordan and condemned the use of a controversial cybercrime law.

French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne chairs a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting on the Middle East, including the situation in Gaza and Israel on Jan. 23, 2024, in New York City.

Regional View

France's new FM Sejourne makes first visit to Egypt, Lebanon, Israel & Jordan

French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné is set to visit the Middle East, meeting with almost all the parties involved in the Gaza war, except Qatar.

ISMAILIA, EGYPT - JANUARY 10: A ship transits the Suez Canal towards the Red Sea on January 10, 2024 in Ismailia, Egypt. In the wake of Israel's war on Gaza after the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, Houthi rebels in Yemen pledged disruption on all ships destined for Israel through the Red Sea's Suez Canal. The disruption on world trade is evident in the number of companies using this container ship route - a 90 per cent decline compared to figures one year ago. (Photo by Sayed Hassan/Getty Images)

Quick Take

Red Sea attacks push global firms to seek overland shipping alternatives

An Israeli company is sending goods overland from the United Arab Emirates through Saudi Arabia and other firms are looking at different arrangements as US strikes fail to deter Houthi attacks.

US soldiers participate in the annual military exercises known as "Eager Lion", near Maan some 200 kilometres south of the capital Amman on May 17, 2017.

Breaking | Last Updated: 29/01/2024 16:45

3 US troops killed, 25 wounded in Iran-backed drone attack in Jordan

President Joe Biden has vowed to respond after US troops were killed by a suspected Iran-backed militia for first time since Israel's war in Gaza began.

KHALIL MAZRAAWI/afp/AFP via Getty Images

Quick Take

As Captagon war heats up, Jordan escalates airstrikes in Syria

Jordan has clashed with and struck alleged drug smugglers several times in recent weeks as the Captagon trade continues to thrive the region.

11/17/2023 Amman, Jordan. Hundreds of demonstrators carry placards and Palestinian flags during a solidarity protest in support of Palestinians in Gaza, in downtown Amman, Jordan, on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023. Jordanians called for an immediate withdrawal of American military bases from Jordan as Israel raids Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza. (Photo by Annie Sakkab / Middle East Images / Middle East Images via AFP) (Photo by ANNIE SAKKAB/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

In Jordan, Gaza rage turns to US as Hamas and Muslim Brotherhood make gains

As Hamas' popularity soars in Jordan, its ally the Muslim Brotherhood is also gaining political traction.

Hanna Davis

By Hanna Davis

In Amman, reporting on refugees

Officers of the Directorate of Narcotics Control of Saudi Arabia's Interior Ministry sort through tablets of captagon (Fenethylline) seized during a special operation and presented before AFP afterward in the Red Sea coastal city of Jeddah on March 1, 2022.

Quick Take

Jordanian military kills drug smugglers on Syrian border

Cross-border drug smuggling was a major topic of discussion during Syria’s readmission into the Arab League.

Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi gives a joint press conference with his German counterpart following talks at the Foreign Ministry in Berlin on March 10, 2021.

Interview

Israel already suffering 'strategic defeat' with global outcry over Gaza, Jordan’s FM says

In an interview with Al-Monitor, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi urged the United States to wield its influence with Israel to stem the bloodshed in Gaza after two months of devastating war.

With